Where Darkness Sleeps
by SilverGato
Summary: Steve is resurrected in a place with a dark secret and many dangers, and when Claire is lured there...
1. Reawakened

Disclaimer: I don't own anything Resident Evil, but Viktor Cornelius, his wife and daughter, and the N-Virus is mine! All mine!  
  
Author's Note: Hi everyone! Here is the "Countdown to Freedom" sequel I said I might make. It'll be in third person rather than Steve's first person. Why? Because it's easier. Now enjoy!   
  
'It has been eighth months since Chris and I escaped from Rockfort. I'll never forget what happened there. I can still remember everything clearly...the Ashfords, that crazy prison, and especially Steve. I still regret that I couldn't save him after he sacrificed himself to save me.   
  
Chris has been working day and night to try to find a way to shut down Umbrella permanently. During these months the team has slowly come back together. Leon managed to bring back Sherry, who is now living with us. I also met Barry, Jill, and Jill's friend Carlos. Maybe now we have enough people to stop Umbrella for good.'  
  
Claire shut her diary. She looked forward to going to stop Umbrella. She couldn't bear the thought of more people dying because of them. She sat up on her bed and looked around.  
  
Chris had managed to find a nice place to live. It was temporary, of course. Umbrella was still looking for him, so it was impossible for them to stay in one place for too long. Claire was a bit disappointed; she wanted to fix up her new room. Right now it was very dull-looking. There were bare white walls with just a simple bed and dresser. Claire's stuff was all over the place, as she wasn't particularly neat.   
  
Claire looked out the window. It was still morning. She got up and quietly went down the stairs. She knew Sherry was still sleeping and didn't want to wake her up. She had never imagined that Sherry, the little girl she found while looking for her brother, would be staying with them. Sherry was like a little sister to Claire.   
  
She reached the bottom of the stairs and headed into the kitchen. She spotted Chris sitting at the table, eating some breakfast. He looked up at her as she entered.  
  
"Up so soon? I figured you'd be sleeping in," he said.  
  
"I didn't want to sleep in. Are you going anywhere today?" Claire asked.   
  
"I'm going to see Jill today. We have a lot of things to talk about," he said.  
  
"Oh really?" Claire said in a playful tone, "what kind of things?" Chris narrowed his eyes.  
  
"Business," he said in a tone that meant she should drop the subject. She only smiled. Chris and Jill had been working together for a long time, and she often liked to tease him about his relationship with her.   
  
"Do you mind watching Sherry while I'm gone?" Chris asked. Claire shook her head.  
  
"No, of course not," she said. Chris finished his breakfast and headed toward the door to leave. He looked back at her with slight grin.  
  
"Be good. Don't go wandering off on any wild adventures," he said. Chris disappeared out the door, leaving Claire alone.  
  
"Don't worry, I think I'm done with adventuring," Claire said to herself before going to watch television.   
  
~  
  
Everything was dark to him. All he could do was hear. There were footsteps and muffled voices, but he couldn't make out what they were saying. Did he have a name? What had happened to him?  
  
His vision hadn't improved, everything was still dark, but he was beginning to hear better.  
  
"Oh! The specimen is finally waking up!"  
  
"Quick! Go get Mister Wesker!"   
  
He blocked out the noises from outside and focused on remembering. He tried remembering his name first. It seemed hazy at first, but it soon became clear.  
  
'My...name...'  
  
'...Steve...'  
  
That's right. It was Steve. Bits and pieces of his memory slowly returned. He recalled pain, a dark corridor with statues, a girl...  
  
'Claire...'  
  
He was aware of someone beside him. He couldn't see who it was, but he felt uneasy.  
  
"I see you've woken up," a deep voice said. Steve thought he had heard it before.  
  
"Wherrre...am...I?" he slurred.   
  
"I can't tell you yet. Do you remember anything?" the voice asked.  
  
"Uhm...A little. I remember...Claire..." Steve thought hard, trying to remember. Claire and he had been trying to escape from somewhere, but he couldn't remember where they were escaping from. There was some crazy man that had tried to kill them...and a woman...  
  
'Rockfort! That's right. I was in a prison.' Steve's thoughts were interrupted by a grunt.  
  
"Claire. So you do remember her," he said. He didn't sound happy about it. "I bet you're probably wondering why you aren't dead," the man said.   
  
"I was...dead?" Steve asked. He heard a small chuckle.  
  
"Yes, some what. The T-Veronica virus in your body is what brought you back to life. We've repaired any wounds you've received, including that large fatal wound on your stomach." Steve touched his stomach. He faintly remembered being injured there, but he couldn't feel the wound now.   
  
"Why can't I see?" he asked finally.  
  
"Oh, don't worry about that. Your senses will slowly return," the man said. He then sighed, "You'll be fed later, get some rest," he said. Steve heard footsteps, and then the sound of a heavy door being shut. Steve decided that now would be a good time to rest, and went back to sleep.   
  
Wesker silently walked through the quiet halls of the Cornelius residence, thinking to himself. He had just paid a visit to the now resurrected Steve Burnside. The information Mr. Burnside had given him was useless, and all he seemed to remember was what had happened before he died. Even though the boy was almost useless information-wise, Wesker wanted to see if he could train him to be a powerful, obedient weapon.   
  
  
  
Wesker still remembered hauling his corpse onto the submarine as the Antarctic base went up in flames. The T-Veronica virus was the only reason that Steve was alive now. His team of scientists had managed to activate what little T-Veronica virus was already in him. They had taken Steve to a secret place, Viktor Cornelius's mansion. It was where all the potential experiments were placed. They had found a decent cell for Steve, far away from the other monsters.   
  
  
  
'I bet old Viktor is turning in his grave,' Wesker smiled. Viktor Cornelius was one of the scientists that had been working for Umbrella. Cornelius had been working on a special kind of virus. He used the mansion as some sort of twisted laboratory. It reminded Wesker of the Spencer mansion. Cornelius had been a quiet individual at first, but once he got involved with the virus, he went crazy. There were horror stories about human test subjects being kidnapped and dragged into the mansion in the dead of night, and anyone who passed by the mansion could hear horrible screaming. Wesker didn't really believe those stories, though. Cornelius had been assassinated when his research had gone too far. It was becoming a threat to Umbrella, and he was killed. A shame really, Wesker was curious about what type of virus Cornelius had been developing. Now the mansion was just a storage room for monsters.   
  
  
  
Wesker was about to head out of the mansion, when something caught his attention. At his feet there was a broken vial. Red liquid was all over the floor, and on one of the broken shards from the vial, there was a label with words scribbled in red ink.   
  
  
  
"N-Virus." 


	2. Trapped

Author's Note: Sorry this wasn't up sooner, but Chapter 2 was very hard to write. I had to write the second part over about three times before I got something satisfying from it. I'm not really pleased with the chapter due to all the complications such as time. Anyway! Since this is a sequel to "Countdown to Freedom", there's going to be some small references. So if you haven't read it, you might be a slightly confused (Please read it?). The next chapter will be better. Promise. I'll shut up so you can read. Enjoy!  
  
Steve's vision was a little blurry, but he could at least see what was going on around him. He was in a dark, messy jail cell. There was water dripping from a broken pipe within his cell. Outside the cell was a couple of tables with lab equipment and papers spread out across them.   
  
  
  
'I must have been sleeping for a while,' he thought to himself. Most of his memories had returned, including his T-Virus infection. And the voice that had been talking to him sounded very familiar to that mysterious man he met on Rockfort who was looking for Claire. Steve didn't know anything else other than that, but he did know that he had to escape and find Claire.   
  
  
  
The scientists who kept checking on him seemed to be leaving. He was glad though, maybe once they left he'd be able to escape. There were two scientists packing up their things. The first scientist had short, dark brown hair. He was tall and muscular. The scientist beside him was shorter, a little pudgier, and had short red hair. He wore thick-rimmed glasses.   
  
  
  
"Joel already left," one of the scientists said.   
  
  
  
"He always leaves early, but I don't blame him. This place gives me the creeps," the second scientist said.   
  
  
  
"I'll be glad to get out of here and away from these freaks," the first scientist muttered. Steve felt a little offended. He knew that they were including him in their list of "freaks". The door suddenly flew upon, and a man with panic-stricken eyes rushed in. His face looked red, like he had been sunburned. Sweat dripped from his face.  
  
  
  
"The doors are locked!" he shrieked, "We're trapped inside!"   
  
  
  
"That's ridiculous. The doors only lock during an emergency and there's been no emergency. All the monsters have been secured," the first scientist said. Steve noticed the tension in his voice.  
  
  
  
"But I've tried all the doors! It's like someone locked us in, and Mr. Wesker left before us..." the panicked scientist trailed off.  
  
  
  
"Don't be stupid! Why would he lock us inside? I'll go check the doors, and if they are locked, we'll just have to find a way to unlock them before any of the monsters can get out," No matter how calm the first scientist was acting, Steve could still detect his nervousness and fear. There was a muffled sound somewhere. It sounded like screaming. It sounded like a man screaming. Steve tensed up at the sound, as did the scientists.  
  
  
  
"We have to get out of here," the terrified scientist said. Steve knew that he might be in danger too. If he was able to help them, maybe he could escape and find Claire.  
  
  
  
"Hey," he said hoarsely. All three scientists whirled around to look at him. Steve swallowed, his throat felt dry.  
  
  
  
"Let me out of here, I might be able to help you," he said. The red-faced scientist snatched the keys from the hands of the tall scientist and rushed over to his cell. His hands shook as he fumbled with the keys, but he was stopped when the tall scientist roughly grabbed him by the shoulders.  
  
  
  
"Are you crazy?! You can't let that thing out! It could be dangerous!" The scientist snarled.   
  
  
  
"But he's not like the other monsters we've dealt with! He could help us!" the red-faced scientist protested. The tall scientist scowled and slammed the scared scientist against the bars of Steve's cell.  
  
  
  
"Look here! We can't let him out. Do you really want to deal with Mr. Wesker?" the scientist asked. The red-faced scientist shook his head.  
  
  
  
"N-No, but if the monsters have already escaped because of the mansion being sealed..." the shorter scientist with the thick glasses piped up.  
  
  
  
"Now calm down. We've taken monsters out of their cells before to see how they would react to their environment. This would be no different. If this boy is as powerful as Mr. Wesker says he could be, then it wouldn't be a bad idea to bring him if there's something out there. We would just have to keep him restrained like the other monsters," he said. Steve didn't like the sound of it. This was not how he saw his plan playing out. He didn't want to be treated like some dangerous monster. The tall scientist snatched a handgun off one of the tables, and a pair of handcuffs that looked like they were meant to restrain something very powerful. The red-faced scientist opened the door to his cell and motioned for Steve to step out. Steve wondered if he should just try to take down the scientists and escape on his own.   
  
  
  
'Bad idea...what if I got lost? Or what if something bad finds me?' The tall scientist came toward him with the handcuffs. Steve sighed and placed his arms behind his back. He'd play by their rules for now. After the scientist was done cuffing him, he pointed his handgun at him.  
  
  
  
"You try anything funny, and I'll..." his voice trailed off, letting his handgun finish the sentence. Steve nodded. The short scientist spoke again.   
  
  
  
"I'm afraid we haven't introduced ourselves. My name is Peter," he then motioned to the red-faced scientist, "that's Joel, and the scientist over there is Greg." Another scream echoed from deep within the house. Joel uttered a loud gasp.  
  
  
  
"W-we have to get out of here!" his voice rose with panic.   
  
  
  
"Shut up, let's just see what's wrong with the doors," Greg said. Greg went ahead and slowly pushed open the door. There was a pitch-black corridor. Steve could have sworn he heard something scratching from within the walls.   
  
  
  
"Peter, get the flashlight. Everyone else follow me," Greg said. Peter obediently grabbed the flashlight, and everyone stepped out into the corridor. Peter nervously flicked on the flashlight, dimly lighting the dark corridor. Greg gave Steve a dangerous look as he walked past him, as if daring him to try and escape. Steve scowled at Greg from behind as Greg led everyone out of the BOW holding cell.   
  
  
  
  
  
'It's nighttime,' Claire thought as she glanced out the window. Today had been uneventful, just like yesterday, and like the day before that. Chris had been too preoccupied with Umbrella's recent activities to actually just sit down and rest. When he got home from Jill's house, he went upstairs and immediately went to bed. Claire and Sherry had spent most of the day watching television, or playing outside. Claire wondered how much longer it would be before these peaceful times ended.  
  
  
  
The phone rang.  
  
  
  
"Who could be calling this late?" Claire muttered as she went to pick up the phone. She was a little hesitate to answer, fearing that it might be someone that wanted them dead. On the other hand, it could be an emergency from Barry or Jill. Claire finally picked up the phone. Before she could even get a "hello" out, the person on the other line began to speak. Her fears were confirmed as soon as she heard who was talking.  
  
  
  
"Hello Redfield."  
  
  
  
"Wesker? How did you get this number?" Claire asked nervously.   
  
  
  
"Ah, so it's Chris's younger sister. Let's say I have eyes and ears everywhere," the deep, arrogant, voice of Wesker answered. Claire went to hang up. She needed to tell Chris that Wesker knew where they were.   
  
  
  
"I wouldn't hang up if I were you," Claire froze. Wesker continued speaking.  
  
  
  
"I have a deal for you," he said, "I have possession, well, had possession of your friend, Mr. Burnside-"  
  
  
  
"Steve?! Where is he? What have you done to him?!" Claire demanded angrily. Claire knew Wesker was sadistic, and the thought of her friend being mutilated or experimented on even after death made her furious.   
  
  
  
"Oh, I haven't done that much. An injection here or there. I think you'll be pleased to know that he is still alive, and you can see him again," Wesker said. There was silence over the phone as Claire tried to absorb what Wesker had said. She wanted to believe it, she wanted desperately to believe it, but she knew that Steve was dead. He wasn't going up come back.   
  
  
  
"You liar," she snarled.   
  
  
  
"I'm no liar. The T-Veronica virus that was inside of him revived him. Just like me. He's alive...well, maybe not for long," Wesker said.  
  
  
  
"What do you mean, 'maybe not for long'?" Claire asked.  
  
  
  
"You see, he may be in some serious trouble. We've been keeping him inside a large mansion for experimenting, but something went wrong and we had to seal it. Now all the monsters have probably gotten out, and Mr. Burnside is in there with them..." Wesker didn't have to finish. Claire paused, trying to think it over. She knew she couldn't trust Wesker, but if Steve was alive...  
  
  
  
"Where's this mansion?" Claire asked. Claire swore she could have seen Wesker smiling that devil-like smile as he told her the mansion's location and how she'd be able to enter. 


	3. Bloodshed

Author's Note: Yeah! School's out! I hope I didn't take too long to get this chapter up, did I? This chapter will my first time with graphic violence writing. Tell me what you think! And thank you very much for the reviews ^_^   
  
Skritch. Skritch.  
  
It was that annoying scratching noise again. Steve didn't know what it was or where it was coming from. Every time he stopped to search for the source of the sound, he was pushed forward by one of the scientists behind him. He wanted to ditch them, but they knew more about this mansion then he did. If he managed to escape, there would be no doubt that he would end up lost.   
  
  
  
The rooms they had traveled through so far were very dark. Peter had to use the flashlight to guide them from one place to another. Steve had caught a glimpse at what was in the rooms as they passed. A lot of the rooms had been trashed. There were a lot of valuable things that were lying on the ground in pieces. No one had said much about it, they were all focused on finding the control room.   
  
  
  
Joel wiped the sweat from his head and coughed.  
  
  
  
"Is it just me or is anyone else think it's boiling hot in here?" he asked. Steve looked at him strangely. The rooms had been very cold, in fact some of the windows had either been shattered or opened. Greg stopped to examine Joel.   
  
  
  
"It's pretty cold. Are you feeling alright?" Greg asked him.  
  
  
  
"I feel kind of sick," Joel said, "I hope nothing is seriously wrong with me..."  
  
  
  
"I don't think so. Let's just get out of this mansion," Greg said. Greg looked over at Steve, who was leaning against a desk.   
  
  
  
"What are you looking at? Get moving," Greg snapped. Steve frowned, but followed them into the next room. Surprisingly, the room was dimly lit. There were pieces of glass on the red carpet, furniture had been overturned, and the off-white walls were cracked. The only thing that seemed to be untouched in the room was the painting of a young girl playing in a field of flowers.   
  
  
  
"Here's a map!" Peter exclaimed. He spread it out on the desk as the other scientist huddled around him. Steve watched them impatiently, testing his restraints a little. Peter pointed out the path they would need to take to get to the control room.  
  
  
  
"It's not very far, and it should be safe. I think we'll be okay. It seems that none of the monsters have escaped into the mansion," Peter commented.  
  
  
  
"But what about these rooms? I remember when this place looked so nice, and now its all trashed. Don't you think the monsters came through here too?" Joel asked.   
  
  
  
"I don't think they'd get here this fast, unless there's more monsters being stored in areas we don't know about," Peter said.   
  
  
  
"We shouldn't stick around to find out. Peter, led the way," Greg said. Peter nodded, and led the group to the control room.   
  
  
  
Steve and the scientists passed through several of the rooms without being bothered by any kinds of monsters. Peter had commented that maybe there was no emergency after all. They were stopped when they heard a moaning behind them. Steve tensed up. He had heard that familiar noise before.  
  
  
  
'No...they couldn't be here...' Steve and the others turned around. What they saw was Joel leaning against the wall. He was covered in sweat and his face was very red.  
  
  
  
"Ohhh...uhnnn..." he moaned. Joel slid down the wall, holding his stomach. He looked at the others.  
  
  
  
"W-what's wrong with me?" he asked them. He winced in pain. Peter walk over to Joel and kneeled beside him.  
  
  
  
"He looks bad, Greg. He's really sick," Peter said. Saliva dribbled down Joel's chin. He looked at Peter, his eyes looked glazed-over.   
  
  
  
"Pe...ter, I..." was all Joel managed to say before he tightly gripped Peter's shoulders and sank his teeth deep into his neck. Peter's eyes widen.  
  
  
  
"Arrrgh! Ahhhhh!" Peter shrieked as he tried to twist himself out of Joel's grip. Joel bit down harden, making it impossible for Peter to free himself without losing a chunk of his neck.   
  
  
  
"Joel! What the hell are you doing?!" Greg screamed at the crazed scientist. Steve backed away from the two scientists. He knew he had seen zombie-like monsters before, but this definitely didn't seem like a zombie. In fact, Joel didn't look like he was trying to eat Peter's flesh, but his Adam's Apple bobbed up in down as if he were drinking.   
  
  
  
Peter's gurgled cries were heard as he tried to fight off his attacker. He flailed his arms about and clawed at Joel, but Joel wasn't finished with him.   
  
  
  
"Joel! Peter!"   
  
  
  
Greg pulled out his handgun and fired five bullets straight into Joel's head. Joel screamed as each bullet punctured his skull, and he let go of Peter's neck. Joel lowered his head and his body went limp. His sweat-drenched bangs prevented Steve or Greg from seeing his face.  
  
  
  
Greg, recovering from the shock of what had happened, rushed over to Peter. He turned over his body, and to his horror found that Peter was dead. His eyes were still opened, frozen in a look of terror and pain. His mouth was opened in a frozen scream. Blood was still trickling down the open wound in his neck. Steve stared in shock as Greg looked away from the fallen scientists.   
  
  
  
"What...what was that...?" Greg asked, his voice was barely audible. Greg got up and looked at the bodies one last time.   
  
  
  
"Peter...Joel...I'm sorry," he said softly. He looked at Steve, this time not giving him a bitter look.   
  
  
  
"It's just you and me. Let's get to the control room," he said. Greg scooped up the flashlight. Steve followed him. Greg led him down a long corridor. It was lit too. It was very beautiful, the walls were perfectly white, and the floors were made of wood. The scratching noise was louder here. It made Steve uncomfortable. They quickly made their way into the control room.  
  
  
  
The control room was huge. There were computers and machines everywhere Steve turned. Greg immediately went to work. Whatever Greg was doing was displayed on a large screen hanging on the wall.   
  
  
  
"The mansion was sealed after all," Greg said, "it seems the reason was because of a virus spill...oh no, that must mean Joel..." Greg trailed off. He went silent and began typing in a few more things.  
  
  
  
"There was a virus spill?" Steve asked. Greg looked up.  
  
  
  
"That's what it says, but I've never seen a virus like that. I don't think either of us is infected, but we still need to escape," Greg said, "now shut up while I try to figure out how to get these doors opened."  
  
  
  
Steve remained silent as Greg worked. He heard Greg groan in annoyance and mutter to himself.   
  
  
  
"That's it!" Steve heard him say.   
  
  
  
"What did you find?" Steve asked.  
  
  
  
"We can't unlock the doors, but there is an alternate way out of the mansion. It's supposed to be used only in emergencies. I'm going to get a map of the route," Greg replied. Greg printed out the map and memorized the route they would need to take.  
  
  
  
"This is going to be complicated, but I think we can do it," Greg said. Steve nodded, but didn't say anything.  
  
  
  
'That's good. The sooner I get out of here, the sooner I can find Claire,' Steve thought.  
  
Claire was driving to the exact location Wesker had given here. She already knew Chris would be furious at her for leaving in the middle of the night to go on some rescue mission by herself. She cursed at herself over and over for going through with this plan. She knew she couldn't trust Wesker enough for this to be a simple rescue mission. That's why she brought along her handgun. Hopefully, she wouldn't need it. However, she still didn't know if Steve was alive. Maybe it was all wishful-thinking that made her believe that he survived and that she was heading right into a trap.  
  
  
  
"Steve..." Claire sighed. She had to make sure. If he needed her help, she couldn't just abandon him. She looked at the map she had made to show her to the mansion. It wasn't very far now. As she looked up, she noticed how quiet it was. There were no crickets chirping, nothing. Just dead silence.  
  
  
  
The mansion was up ahead. It was very beautiful. It was probably owned by some rich guy from Umbrella. Claire was too distracted by the mansion to notice a figure standing in the middle of the road. Claire turned her head and gasped, swerving the car to miss whoever it was. The figure disappeared from her sight as she tried to regain control of the car. As soon as the car stopped, she quickly got out.   
  
  
  
"Oh please don't tell me I hit him," Claire said to herself. She checked for any trace of the figure, but there was none. She checked under the car but there was no one there.   
  
  
  
'Maybe my mind is playing tricks on me,' she thought. Claire decided to make the rest of the trip to the mansion on foot, seeing how the car was stuck in the dirt and it would be hard to get it out.  
  
  
  
Claire followed the map to the secret entrance Wesker had told her about. It was a small square-shaped hole in the ground, which had a steel door over it. There was a number pad beside it and the entire thing was lightly covered by dirt and leaves. She brushed some of the dirt away and typed in the code. The steel door slid up and revealed a ladder she could climb down. She adjusted her pack and climbed down, the steel door closing as she descended.   
  
  
  
"Please use this door only during an emergency," a mechanical voice spoke as Claire's feet touched the steel floor.   
  
  
  
'This is an emergency, pal," Claire thought as she continued down the well-lit tunnel. There was another door at the end which required another password to access. Claire punched in the number and the door slid open, showing another ladder leading up. She sighed to herself.   
  
'Leave it to Umbrella to make an evacuation process as complex and athletic as possible,' she thought bitterly as she climbed up the ladder and into the next room.  
  
  
  
The room was very big and elegant. There was a spiral staircase in the back of the room, and a large red carpet was spread out across a marble floor. There were statues and paintings everywhere. Most of the statues and paintings took away from the beauty of the room, for they were mostly of demons and other disturbing things. The only thing that wasn't disturbing was the large brass statue of a young girl in the middle of the room. Claire guessed it was the daughter of the man who lived here.   
  
  
  
"Steve?" Claire called out, mentally slapping herself as she did. Even though the mansion looked abandoned, she didn't want to attract any unwanted attention. She doubted Steve could hear her from here anyway. She pulled out her handgun, ready to take on anything that got in her way of finding Steve and escaping together.   
  
Skritch. Skritch.  
  
  
  
"Did you hear that?" Steve asked Greg as they traveled through the long corridor again. The scratching sounds were getting louder. It was as if something from inside the walls was trying to claw its way out.  
  
  
  
"Keep moving," was all Greg said. Steve glared at Greg. He had no fondness at all for the bossy scientist. He had to put up with him if he wanted to escape, though. He'd wait until the right moment and then make his escape. He wasn't sure whether or not he could break the handcuffs on him, but he would have to try. There was no way he was going to get dragged out the mansion only to be placed in some lab for experimenting. Steve would rather die again than have to do that.   
  
  
  
Greg seemed edgy about being in the corridor. Every time he heard something, he'd shine the flashlight in that direction. Steve was feeling anxious too. There was nothing that seemed threatening though. The scratching seemed to have stop, and the only sounds in the corridor were their footsteps.  
  
  
  
"I guess it stopped..." Steve said.   
  
  
  
CRACK!  
  
  
  
Steve and Greg froze when a thin, slimy tentacle-like thing broke free from the wall and burrowed itself deep into the opposite wall. Steve had only gotten a glimpse at it, but it looked like at the end of the tentacle, there were two long spikes with a series of smaller spikes lined up next to them.   
  
  
  
Crack. Crack.  
  
  
  
More tentacles emerged from the walls, launching themselves and embedding themselves into the opposite sides of the walls. They were trying to trap them in one spot.  
  
  
  
"Run!" Greg screamed. Steve ran as fast as he could go, dodging the emerging tentacles as he ran. He looked back to see Greg falling behind him. Greg slowed down, but failed to see the wall he was near was cracking.   
  
  
  
"Greg! Look out!" Steve shouted. Greg didn't even have time to scream as the tentacle lashed out at him.  
  
  
  
Splotch.   
  
  
  
Greg's head fell to the floor and rolled away from the rest of him. His body fell to the ground afterwards with a sickening thump. His torso had been neatly sliced through. Greg had died before he knew what hit him. One of the tentacle's spikes dug into his body, and dragged his corpse towards the wall. It was pulled against the wall with such force that it created a hole in the wall big enough to pull Greg through. The sounds of something feasting on Greg's body was heard.   
  
  
  
Steve felt something zip past him. His faces was inches away from another tentacle. Shaking off the shock, he began running again. He dodged past most of the other tentacles. As he ran past, another tentacle emerged from the wall.   
  
  
  
'It's getting too close,' Steve thought. Instead of burrowing in the wall like the others, this one lunged at Steve. Steve screamed as the tentacle descended on him. Steve leapt at the door, hoping to escape a decapitation. With amazing speed, the tentacle swiped at Steve. The handcuffs fell from his wrists, freeing his arms. The tentacle had missed and cut the handcuffs instead. Steve fell against the door, and quickly stumbled out of the corridor. He slammed the door shut and leaned against it panting.   
  
  
  
"What were those things?! That's nothing like I've seen before," he said out loud. He still pictured Greg's head rolling across the ground and shuddered. He looked around the room, expecting to see the corpses of Joel and Peter.  
  
  
  
They weren't there.  
  
  
  
Steve looked at the spot where they had fallen. The only thing left was a lot of blood. Blood was smeared across the ground and up the walls. There was some blood dripping from the ceiling. Steve glanced up and choked back the urge to throw up. Peter's mangled corpse was hanging from the ceiling fan. It was in worse shape then it had been when Joel had killed him. He was almost completely drenched in blood and his eyes had been ripped out, leaving nothing but bloody, empty sockets. Half of his face was missing and chunks of flesh had been torn from all over his body.   
  
  
  
"Wha...who could have done this?" Steve asked.   
  
  
  
On the ceiling, scribbled in blood, were letters that spelled out two words. Two words that sent chills up Steve's spine.   
  
  
  
"WELCOME GUEST." 


	4. The Angel and Devil

Author's Note: Sorry about the delay. Writer's block is slowing this story down. Anyway, this is more of an action chapter. Hopefully, you'll like it. Anyway, if you have any helpful criticism to offer, I'd be glad to hear it ^_^ Also, this story won't be a lemon, cuz I don't know how I'd be able to write a lemon into this. Sorry!  
  
Claire couldn't keep herself from staring in awe at her new surroundings. Giant pillars of dragon-like monster supported a second-floor balcony. There was no staircase in the room that led to the balcony. Claire guessed it was in another room. She glanced at the paintings and statues that were lined up next to each other across the room. One of the paintings that captured her attention was of a black-haired man with a cane standing next to a bleeding corpse hanging upside down. What was most disturbing is that the man looked smug. Claire shuddered and looked at the large statue of the girl.   
  
'She looks kind of like me when I was little,' she smiled. She then shook her head and went back to searching.   
  
  
  
There was a desk not to far away from her. It was scattered with papers and books. Hoping she would find something on Steve, she walked over and began rummaging through the mess. She found something that looked like a guest book. When she picked it up, a crest fell out. It was a brass crest with an angel craved on it.   
  
  
  
'I may need that,' Claire though. She picked up the angel crest and put it in her pack. She looked back at the guest book. Curiously, she began flipping through the pages. There were dozens of names written in black ink, each of them crossed out. The book looked very old, but on the final page there were names written in red ink. It looked liked it had been done recently.   
  
"Peter Schultz, Greg Corwin, Joel Firman..." these names had been crossed out. There were only two other names that hadn't been crossed out. Claire gasped when she read them.  
  
  
  
"Steve Burnside, Claire...Redfield..." Claire stared at the two names. She didn't know why their names were on this guest book. Did that mean Steve was here? And why was her name on this list even though she had never been here before? Disturbed, Claire shut the book. She wouldn't find anything else that was useful here. Glancing at the descending spiral staircase, she hoped her questions would be answered as she traveled deeper into the mansion. She gripped her handgun tightly and climbed down the stairs.   
  
Claire was greeted by darkness as she stepped off the staircase and onto the cold metal floor of a long hallway. It was impossible to see anything. Claire dug into her pack and pulled out her lighter. It was the same one Chris had given her. She was surprised that he had got it back for her. She swiftly moved her thumb across the wheel, and a tiny flame lit up a small portion of the hallway. Claire navigated through the hallway, using the lighter to make sure she didn't walk into something. The clanging of her footsteps against a metal floor and her breathing were the only sounds she could hear.   
  
Claire ran her fingers across the wall as she traveled further down the hallway. The hallway seemed to extend forever. There was a horrible stench, a smell that seemed all too familiar. It made Claire's stomach tighten. Claire stopped when her fingers no longer touched the cold metal of the wall, but instead something warm and wet...  
  
Claire pulled her hand away and brought her hand close to the lighter.  
  
Blood.   
  
Claire forced herself not to panic. She slowly brought the lighter up to where her fingers had touched. Sure enough, there was a trail of blood running down the wall. Claire followed it with her lighter, and uttered a gasp when she found the source.  
  
It was a man, or at least it looked like a man. He was slumped against the wall. Claire kneeled down next to him. Part of his scalp had decayed, showing the bone of his skull. His dirty blonde hair was matted together. The front of his shirt was covered in blood and had been ripped. His skin was a strange reddish-color. He looked like he hadn't been dead for very long. There was a folded, wrinkled piece of paper in his shirt pocket. Claire carefully took it and began to read it. It was smudged from the blood and some of the words she couldn't make it.  
  
"If anyone finds th-- note, I'm probably alre-- dead. I left G--- and the others early t--- morning and stumbled across some th---- I wasn't supp---- to see when I got lost. The old ow--- of this place, Co---el--s, is crazy. I tri-- finding Greg and ev----- but instead fo--- that horrible mo----. It knows I'm h---, and now it's af--- me. If I had left it alo--- I would have prob---- escaped. If anyone is reading this, then please get-"  
  
The rest of the note was too smudged to read it. She put the note back into the man's shirt pocket.   
  
Claire heard a soft growl. She tensed up and searched for the sound. She looked down and saw the corpse of the man quiver. Fresh blood was dripping from its chin.  
  
"Oh no..."  
  
It forced itself to get up, using the wall to help it. It growled again, lifting its head. One of its eyes had been ripped out, and the other eye was a milky white color. More blood poured out of its mouth and dripped onto the floor. It flashed two long fangs that reminded Claire of a vampire. This was the last thing Claire saw before it lunged for her. She immediately dropped the lighter, surrounding them in darkness.   
  
"NO!"  
  
  
  
Steve didn't know how far he had traveled throughout the mansion. He wasn't sure where he was, or how to get out of the mansion. Only Greg knew that, but he was dead now. Greg had taken Steve's only way of escape with him to his grave.   
  
The images kept flowing through his mind. Greg's head rolling across the floor, Peter's body hanging from the fan. He almost threw up at the sight of Peter's mutilated corpse dangling from the fan. And that message...   
  
  
  
'I got to focus on finding a weapon,' Steve told himself. So far all the rooms he had been in were useless. He found handgun ammo laying around, but he didn't have a handgun. He walked further down the hallway he was in. Most of the doors were locked or boarded up. As he tested each door, he found a door with a broken lock. He pushed open the door and entered.  
  
The room was dark and almost empty. In the room was only bed and a desk. Steve looked down to see that it looked like someone or something had tried to tear up the wood floor. Wooden boards were scattered across the room, and a crowbar was lying on the floor. There was another room connected to the one he was in, but he'd explore that later. Steve walked over to the desk. On the desk was a brass crest with a devil on it.   
  
  
  
'I'll probably need this for later,' he thought. Steve put the crest away, but froze when he faintly heard a noise coming from the other room.  
  
Skritch. Skritch.   
  
Steve's heartbeat quickened. He remembered that sound. He glanced at the crowbar and moved over to it.  
  
Hiss...  
  
The sound was closer now. He could hear it moving towards him. He reached for the crowbar.  
  
Skritch. Skritch.   
  
The head of a monster emerged from the room. It's head was rounded, and it had two large tusks protruding from its cheeks, stretching out the skin from its face. It had no eyes and it had a large hole for a mouth. It turned its head in Steve's direction.   
  
Steve grabbed the crowbar and stood in an attack position.   
  
The monster stumbled out of the room, and stood up. It was about a couple feet taller than Steve. It's body was very fragile-looking. It's bones were exposed through its yellowish skin. It was as if it had never been fed in its life. Steve could even see its heart beating through its skin. It's arms were thin, but it had large lobster-like claws. It's legs were surprisingly muscular, and its feet were webbed. On its back were the two tentacles that Steve had seen in the corridor with Greg. They hovered over the monsters head, moving about as if they had a mind of their own.  
  
Steve leaped at the monster, lifting the crowbar high into the air. With inhuman reflexes, the monster caught the crowbar between its giant claw. The claw tightened its grip and the crowbar easily snapped it in two. Steve landed on his stomach, still clutching half of the crowbar. The monster twisted its head at Steve, looking down at him. Steve realized he was staring right into its mouth. The monster's head began to expand, and the small hole the monster had for a mouth began to expand. It continued to stretch until the mouth was big enough to swallow Steve whole. There were several "rings" of teeth inside the mouth, which meant that being devoured would be a very painful process. Steve turned away at the horrible smell of its breath.   
  
"Ah, damn it."  
  
The monster's bloated head dove down to swallow him, but Steve took the broken crowbar and shoved it into the monster's mouth. The monster squealed in surprise and reared back, giving Steve enough time to get to his feet. Acidic vomit dripped onto the floor as the monster struggled to cough up the crowbar. In its panic, its tentacles thrashed about in an attempt to get rid of its attacker. Steve dashed towards the door, avoiding the tentacles. He slammed the door behind him, leaving the monster inside.   
  
Steve took a moment to catch his breath, and then hurried away from the door. He ran down the hallway. There was another door, but as he reached for it, he heard a crashing sound behind him. Steve turned around, already knowing what it was.  
  
"No..."  
  
The monster stood in the corridor. It roared in anger and lowered its head so its tusks would level with its target. It charged forward. Steve grabbed the doorknob with a shaky hand and turned it.  
  
Locked.  
  
The monster was gaining speed.  
  
Steve rammed his shoulder into the door. It didn't open, but it seemed to weaken it. Steve looked over his shoulder see the monster was getting too close. Steve rammed the door a couple more times before the door broke open. Steve tumbled inside and rolled away from the door. The monster tried to follow, but its large tusks prevented it from getting in. The monster roared in frustration and began ramming the door. Steve wiped the sweat from his forehead and forced himself to stand up.   
  
As Steve ran to the other side of the room to open the door, he heard gunshots being fired from not too far away.  
  
"Claire...?" he asked aloud. Steve quickened his pace to find the source of the noise. 


	5. Reunion

Author's Note: Sorry about the delay! I had to work out some bugs in the story...Hopefully, there will be fewer problems (Yeah, right). Oh! And if anyone has noticed, this story is Silent Hill influenced. Anyway, is it just me or is fanfiction.net refusing to update my story? Bah. Well, I've got some neat stuff planned for this story, so keep reading!  
  
There was another growl.  
  
Three more bullets.  
  
'Oh God, am I even hitting it?!' Claire thought frantically as she fired her gun into the darkness that consumed the hallway. She kept backing up, bumping into cold metal as she tried to feel her way to the next room. She couldn't see the monster, but she could hear it. It was trying to get to her.   
  
Another growl. It was closer this time.   
  
She felt something brush up against her. She cried out and fired all around her, hoping that she had hit it. She heard something scuffle across the floor.   
  
'It's still alive?!' Claire thought as the scuffling turned into heavy thumps. Claire began following the wall as quickly as she could.   
  
The heavy thumps got louder. Claire pointed her handgun at the sound and pulled the trigger.  
  
Click.   
  
Something slammed Claire against the wall and dug its fingernails into her neck. She screamed and fought against her attacker, trying to loosen its grip on her before it choked her to death.   
  
She felt hot breath against her neck as she fought. Her attacker growled as it held her in place. Claire struggled for air and her vision starting to get hazy. She knew she was going to die.   
  
'Steve...'  
  
She heard a shriek and the zombie-like monster dropped her. Claire gasped for air and heard a heavy thump of a body hitting the ground. Something grabbed her hand and dragged her to her feet. It pulled her away from the monster and she and this mysterious savior ran through an opened door at the end of the hallway. They both stumbled into a dimly-lit room filled with animal heads mounted on the wall and green carpeting on the floor. As soon as she recovered from the shock, Claire looked over at the person who had saved her.   
  
"S...Steve..." she choked out. She rubbed her eyes, but the image of the auburn-haired young man from Rockfort was still there. He was standing there with his hands on his knees, panting. At the sound of his name, he looked up. His eyes filled with surprise, then quickly softened. He smiled at her arrogantly, as if he hadn't been dead for several months.   
  
"Y-you..." Claire tried to speak, but the words were caught in her throat. She had a million questions to ask, a million things to say to him, but none of them came out. Instead, she found herself wrapping her arms around him in a tight hug. She leaned her head against his chest, listening to his beating heart.   
  
Steve looked down at her, stunned. He slowly wrapped his arms around her. Claire looked up and smiled at him. Her eyes moistened.  
  
"You're...alive," she whispered.   
  
"Yeah," he smiled, "did you come here for me?"   
  
  
  
"Of course I did, I couldn't just leave you here," Claire said, feeling a little embarrassed as she spoke. She watched as Steve looked away and blushed slightly. They both reluctantly withdrew from each other's arms.   
  
"Anyway, what happened? I thought you died," she asked him.  
  
"I think I did die. This guy told me I was revived by the T-Veronica virus," Steve explained.   
  
"Do you mean Wesker?" Claire asked. Steve felt like he had heard the name before, but he wasn't fully awake when the man had started to talk to him. Steve shrugged his shoulders.  
  
"It could have been. Who's Wesker?" Steve asked.  
  
"Someone whose been harassing my brother. He's a real jerk," Claire said, "although he did lure me here to find you. I think it was a trap though," she said.   
  
"A trap?" Steve asked. He thought back to those monsters. This whole mansion was like one giant death trap. However, there seemed to be something much darker at work. Steve couldn't stop thinking about that message that was written in blood. No monster could have done that.   
  
"Yeah, but if we could survive Rockfort, then we can survive this," Claire said, then she smiled, "I'm glad I came though."  
  
Steve smiled, but their reunion was cut short when the zombie-like monster burst through the door. Claire and Steve jumped to their feet. It growled and shuffled quickly across the floor with its arms outstretched. Claire darted towards the door in the back of the room. She motioned to Steve.  
  
"Quick! This way!" she shouted. Steve looked at her. That way led right back to the monster he had fought earlier.  
  
"No! Don't go through there!" Steve yelled back. While he was distracted, the zombie grabbed him. Steve quickly tried to push it away before it bit him. He only succeeded in pushing its head back, but he couldn't free himself from its grip.  
  
"Steve!" Claire ran over to help him.   
  
"No! Stay there!" Steve told her. The zombie growled and struggled as Steve pushed it back. He pulled back his free arm and curled his fingers into a fist. The zombie turned its head to bite into Steve's arm, but Steve smashed his fist into the zombie's face before it could sink its teeth in. Steve could hear a sickening crack as its frail bones snapped and his fist sunk deep into its face. The zombie dropped to the ground, shrieking and flailing. Steve looked down at the zombie as he brought his foot down on its head. It shrieking immediately stopped as its face was crushed in. Blood and brain matter oozed out from under Steve's foot. The zombie dropped its arms and remained still.   
  
Claire was now by Steve's side, staring down at the zombie with a pale, sickened face. Steve felt horrible. He felt sick from the disgusting mess on the floor, but worse than that, he felt like a monster.  
  
'It's no different from when you killed them with an actual weapon,' he told himself. Yet it didn't seem to make him feel any better. Perhaps it was because of the look on Claire's face. She looked as if she felt sorry for it. He felt a hand on his shoulder.  
  
"We should go. I think it's safe to return to the first floor of the mansion," Claire said softly. Steve nodded. They walked into the dark hallway, using the wall to guide them. Steve saw light from the upper floor dimly illuminated the staircase. He broke into a run with Claire close behind him. Claire and Steve ran up the stairs and into the main entrance hall of the mansion. Steve winced as light flooded his eyes.   
  
"I think we can leave from here," Claire said as Steve's eyes adjusted to the light. She walked towards the large double doors that led outside, but stopped a few feet away from it and looked down. Steve couldn't tell what she was looking at.   
  
"No!" Claire cried. She crouched down and as Steve walked towards her, he saw her crouching next to a circular steel door and a broken number pad. It had been ripped out and was lying next to Claire. She looked at Steve.  
  
"This was the way I came in. Someone must being trying trap us in here," Claire said. Steve looked at the double doors.  
  
"Why not try this?" Steve walked over to the doors and pulled on them. To his disappointment, they wouldn't budge.   
  
"We'll have to find another way out, but I don't know where to begin looking," Claire said. She looked at Steve, who seemed to be staring at something else. His eyes were wide. She followed his gaze and saw a dark, red liquid oozing from under the door on the right side of the room. The door creaked open as if it were beckoning them to enter. Steve and Claire exchanged glances, and they walked in.   
  
Wesker stared silently at the monitor. The monitor displayed Chris's younger sister and her friend leaving the entrance hall of the mansion. Wesker smiled.  
  
  
  
'All the pieces are almost in place,' Wesker thought. There was just one piece missing, and that piece was Chris himself. Chris would naturally go to rescue his sister if she were in peril. Wesker pictured himself standing in Chris's blood as his sister wept over her brother's corpse...  
  
The only thing that bothered Wesker was the bizarre phenomenon that was occurring in the mansion. It seemed like there was someone else trying to get in on Wesker's fun, and it annoyed him.   
  
'But who? There's no one else in the mansion,' Wesker thought.   
  
'Unless...'  
  
'No, he's dead...'  
  
Wesker wiped his forehead. His skin felt very warm and not cold like usual. It couldn't be because he was getting sick. Wesker wondered if being exposed to that virus had anything to do with it. Wesker turned to his computer and frowned. He had been trying for hours to find some kind of file on the N-Virus, but so far he had found none. He walked away to find the nearest phone. There would be time for worrying later.   
  
Claire gasped as she and Steve entered the room. Blood was splattered all over a large table with some kind of animal carcass laying on a silver tray. The carcass looked like a cat that had been turned inside out. All that was left of the animal was a mess of blood and stringy sinew. Some of its muscles looked like they had been torn out, exposing some of the animal's organs and bones.   
  
"Oh my God...who could have done this?" a horrified Claire asked. Steve looked away from the carcass with disgust. A gun hanging on the wall caught his attention. It was a shotgun.  
  
"Hey look!" Steve exclaimed. He walked over to the shotgun mounted on the wall. It was in between two large, dark, square-shaped holes in the wall. There was a gate preventing anything from getting in...or getting out.   
  
"Steve, be careful..." Claire warned. Steve just smiled at her, and then plucked the shotgun from the wall. The shotgun was already loaded. It wasn't as good as the submachine guns, but it would have to do. Steve turned to Claire.   
  
"See? No harm done," Steve said. The hooks suddenly clicked upward, followed by a mechanical whirl. The gates covering the holes lifted. It was too dark to see what was inside.   
  
"I don't like this," Claire said.   
  
"We better get out of-" Steve was cut off by a low growl. A growl that came from the holes, or were they holding pens?  
  
The sound of nails tapping against the ground followed. Steve remembered the handgun bullets in his pocket. Still keeping his gun trained on the sound, he gave the handgun bullets to Claire. She wasted no time in reloading her handgun.  
  
Two large dogs emerged from the pens. They had no fur, just reddish colored skin. The dogs were covered in a clear, wet film and their skin was stretched over their eyes. The dogs' fangs were a lot bigger than a normal dog. Steve was reminded of the zombie dogs from Rockfort. The zombie dogs that infected him with T-Virus while he was trying to escape.   
  
Rage boiled inside Steve as he recalled what happened at Rockfort. He no longer felt afraid. Steve pointed his shotgun at the dogs.   
  
"C'mon Claire! Let's show these monsters who's boss!" 


	6. Separate Paths

Author's Note: Whew. This part was harder to write than I thought. I've been pretty busy lately...but I'm finally getting my learner's permit! Yahoo! Anyway, the next chapter should speed up the slow pace of this story (I'm really sorry about this). And tell me what you think of Cheryl. Right now she's only playing a very small role, but that could always change (I haven't made up my mind yet). Thanks for sticking with me!  
  
Saliva dripped from the dogs' mouths as they moved closer to Steve and Claire. The first dog stopped in front of Steve and snarled at him, but Steve didn't move. Instead, he pulled the trigger of his shotgun and fired a shell into the dog's body. The dog yelped in pain and collapsed. It yelped and struggled to stand, smearing blood all over the marble floor. Its partner leaped past Steve and landed on Claire. They both fell to the ground and struggled to their feet, with the dog snapping and biting at Claire.   
  
  
  
"Claire!" Steve turned around, aiming at the other dog.  
  
  
  
"Steve, look out!" Claire yelled. Steve heard a snarl behind him and turned around. The other dog he had been fighting was now on its feet. It was soaked in blood, but it didn't seem to care. Steve looked back at Claire to see her still fighting the dog, then turned to see the dog he shot running towards him. Steve quickly fumbled with his shotgun as the dog leaped into the air. The gun bucked in his hands and the dog fell to the ground. It remained still as blood oozed from under it. Steve heard several gunshots followed by yelps. Steve turned around to see Claire crouching next to the corpse of the other dog. He walked over to her and held out his hand. She took his hand and he helped her to her feet.  
  
"Are you okay?" Steve asked.  
  
"Sure. It was a piece of cake," Claire said with a grin. She looked back at the carcass on the table. The grin quickly faded.  
  
"Do you think that was meant for the dogs?" she asked.  
  
"Probably, or else the people that used to live here had very gross tastes in food," Steve said jokingly, trying to lighten the mood. He noticed there were two doors to chose from. One was to the north of the room and the other was to the left of the room.   
  
"Which way should we go?" he asked. Claire looked at both doors, then walked to the northern door. She tugged on it, but the door wouldn't budge.  
  
"I guess we'll take the other door," she said. Steve nodded, and he pushed open the door. Claire reloaded her handgun and walked into the next room. Steve followed behind her.   
  
They both were in another hallway. It was dimly lit by lamps suspended from the ceiling. Four doors were on the right of Steve and Claire, and one door that was nailed shut was on their left.   
  
"Man, this place is huge. We'll never find our way out," Steve muttered.  
  
"No, don't say that. We'll get out of here," Claire said. She walked past him. Steve watched her as she stopped and looked around the room. She began checking each door to see if any of them would open.   
  
'She hasn't changed at all,' he thought. She was still pretty and strong-hearted. It wasn't a surprise that she survived the Rockfort and Antarctic base ordeal. What did surprise him was that she came back for him. No one had ever done that for him before.  
  
'I love you...'   
  
Steve frowned as he recalled what happened during his last moment. He felt a little embarrassed. He never thought he'd have another chance to tell her how he felt about her.  
  
'She probably didn't hear it, or maybe she doesn't remember,' he didn't have the courage to tell her again, especially not in a place like this.   
  
"Steve?" he snapped out of his thoughts to see Claire staring at him with a concerned look.   
  
"Is something wrong?" she asked.   
  
"N-no! Of course not," he said quickly. Claire looked at the row of doors, then pulled out a crest with an angel craved on it.   
  
"You wouldn't happen to have a crest like this, would you?" she asked. Steve remembered the crest he found in the room with that monster, and showed it to Claire. She examined it, before giving him a grim look.  
  
"Steve...I think we should split up for a while, so we can cover more ground," she said. Steve could tell she didn't want to do it. He didn't want to either. They had both risked their lives to find each other again.  
  
"These crests open different doors. The angel crest opens this door," she motioned to the second door, "and the devil crest opens that door," she pointed to the fourth door.   
  
"Okay, I guess it would be wiser to split up," Steve said, although reluctant.   
  
"If anything happens, we'll meet up in the main entrance hall, okay?" Claire said. Steve nodded. Claire walked to the second door and placed the angel crest into the opening. It creaked open. Claire looked at Steve before she went in.   
  
"Hey Steve," she began, she paused before speaking, "...don't die, okay?"   
  
"I won't. You better stay alive too," Steve said. Although he said it jokingly, he meant it. They smiled at each other before Claire disappeared behind the door.   
  
'Please be safe, Claire...' Steve thought. He looked at the door at the end of the hallway and then looked at the devil crest in his hands. He began walking towards the door.   
  
Wesker growled impatiently as the phone rang. If Chris wasn't home, then luring his sister to the mansion would be nothing but a waste of time. The phone stopped ringing, and a groggy voice answered.  
  
"Hello?" The groggy voice belonged to Chris. His voice was filled with confusion. Wesker couldn't help but smile.  
  
"Hello Redfield," he said calmly. The confusion in Chris's voice quickly faded and was replaced with anger and shock.  
  
"Wesker?! How did you find this address?! Wha-"  
  
"That's not important right now," Wesker interrupted, "I have important news regarding your sister."  
  
Chris paused at the other end.  
  
"What do you want with her?" he asked. Wesker could detect the fear in his voice.   
  
"Are you aware that she's gone?" he asked. There was another long pause, Chris was probably looking to see if she had left. Wesker could hear Chris faintly swear on the other end. Chris picked the phone back up.  
  
"Why did you take her?! She had nothing to do with-"  
  
"I didn't take her. She went off to find her friend, Mr. Burnside. I could tell you where she went, but it's very dangerous..." Wesker said.   
  
"I don't care. Just tell me where she is," Chris snarled. Wesker smile grew bigger as he told Chris the coordinates. Wesker's plan was working. Chris would go to rescue his sister and they would both die...  
  
"You better not be lying, Wesker," Chris said.   
  
"Now what makes you think I would do that? You better hurry, you don't know what might be after her," Wesker said. Chris hung up the phone on him.  
  
'Maybe I'll meet him there,' Wesker thought. He'd rather be the one to kill Chris than any of the monsters there. Suddenly, Wesker felt a sharp, intense pain in his stomach. Wesker dropped the phone and clutched his stomach.   
  
'What's happening?!'   
  
"Mr. Wesker?" a young female voice asked. Wesker looked up to see a red-headed, innocent-looking woman in a white lab coat. She was one of HCF's newest employees. A young, insecure scientist named Cheryl Higgins.   
  
"Are you okay?" she asked. Wesker glared at her and stood straight. He ignored the pain in his stomach. He caught a glimpse of concern in Cheryl's eyes, but she quickly looked down.   
  
"M-Mr. Wesker, there's a strange message on your computer," she said quickly.  
  
"Didn't I tell you not to touch my computer?" Wesker snapped. Cheryl flinched at Wesker's harsh tone of voice.  
  
"I-I didn't! I was dropping off some files and I saw it on your computer," she said. Wesker sighed.   
  
"I'll go look," he said. Cheryl nodded and quickly went on her way. He watched her leave.   
  
'Useless,' he thought, 'HCF needs to hire more confident scientists. Not squirmy little girls like her.' Wesker walked off towards his office to find out what was the matter with his computer.   
  
'Piece of junk machinery. I really need a replacement.'  
  
  
  
"LOOKING FOR A CURE..?"  
  
The large, bold letters with the cryptic message were written across Wesker's monitor. Wesker silently fumed as he read the message over and over. Was this someone's idea of a joke? And if so, who?  
  
'If it is a joke, I'll find the nuisance who did it and dispose of him,' he thought angrily. As soon as his fingers touched the keyboard, another message appeared.  
  
"YOU'LL PAY JUST LIKE EVERYONE ELSE!"  
  
Wesker's fingers recoiled from the keyboard as the new message appeared.  
  
'What does all this mean? Does this person know I'm infected?' Wesker thought. His body felt hot all over. He shouldn't be sick...  
  
'I need to go back to the mansion,' he thought bitterly. He hated flaws in his plans. He looked at the handgun lying next to the computer and picked it up. If there was a cure for the N-Virus, he would find it at the mansion.  
  
'Chris, you just better stay out of my way,' he thought. 


	7. The Mysterious Pianist

Author's Note: Hiya! Sorry for the delay. This chapter sort of explains what happened during the eight months after "Countdown to Freedom", and there's a new character that was mentioned earlier in the story! So, enjoy!  
  
Chris sat at the table with his head buried in his hands. He knew he couldn't trust Wesker. There had to be some reason he wanted him to go to that mansion. He didn't think Wesker was doing this out of the kindness of his heart.   
  
'Claire...why did you have to run off?' Chris thought. She should have told him. They could have gone together to save her friend. He knew Claire was strong, but he was still her brother, and it was his job to worry about her safety.   
  
'Then I need to get out there and find her. I'll have to pack weapons and supplies, but what should I do about Sherry?' The little girl was asleep in her room. He tried to think of someone who could stay with her while he was gone. It was too risky to leave her alone. The only person she really trusted was Claire...  
  
'What about Leon? She knows him, right?' Chris picked up the phone and dialed Leon's number. As the phone rang, he silently prayed that he was home.   
  
"Hello? Who is this?" a groggy voice asked.   
  
"Leon?" Chris asked.  
  
"Chris? Why are you calling so late? Has something happened?" he asked. Chris hesitated about telling him. He knew Claire was a good friend of his, and that he'd want to go if she was in danger. And Leon was the type of guy who hated to sit around while someone else was in danger.   
  
"Yeah. Something important has come up and I have to leave, but I can't leave Sherry alone," Chris said.   
  
"Does it have to do with Claire?" Leon asked. Chris sighed, he couldn't lie now.  
  
"Yeah...she's run off, and I'm afraid that she's in danger. I'm going after her," Chris explained.   
  
"Let me help you, then. It'd be safer to-"  
  
"No, I need you to watch Sherry for me," Chris interrupted. He felt bad about making Leon play baby-sitter while someone he knew was in danger, but Sherry wouldn't feel safe around anyone else and he knew he could trust Leon with keeping Sherry safe.  
  
  
  
"But I-"  
  
"Please, Leon. You know I can't leave her alone," Chris said. He heard a sigh from the other end of the line.  
  
"Okay, I'll be over there as soon as I can," Leon said.   
  
"Thanks, you don't know how much I appreciate this, and I will bring her back safely. I promise," Chris said. There was a click on the other end of the line, and Chris sat the phone down, rubbing his forehead.   
  
"This is going to be a long night," he muttered.   
  
"Chris?" a small, child-like voice spoke. Chris turned his head to see Sherry standing at the bottom of the stairs. She was dressed in her light-pink pajamas. She looked sleepy. Chris wondered how to tell her about Claire's absence without alarming her. Ever since Rockfort, Sherry had always been worried that Claire would suddenly leave and not come back. Chris guessed it was because of the scarring memories she had when she was taken by Umbrella.   
  
When Leon had first brought her back, she didn't speak to anyone-not even Claire-and stayed close to him as if Umbrella would snatch her back the moment she left his side. Her physical appearance was horrid. Sherry looked pale and sickly, and had some scars across her belly. She kept having nightmares, and often woke up screaming and sobbing until someone came to comfort her. She eventually recovered, and the nightmares seemed to stop, but she refused to tell anyone what had happened to her. Leon seemed to know something about it, but he wouldn't tell anyone either. It was their secret.   
  
The uncomfortable silence between Chris and Sherry ended when the little girl looked around and asked the one question Chris wished he didn't have to answer.  
  
"Where's Claire?" she asked innocently.   
  
"Claire...left to do something. I'm going to go bring her back, okay?" Chris said in a gentle tone. A tone he wasn't used to using, but he was trying the best he could.   
  
"You're going to leave me alone again?" she asked fearfully. Chris quickly shook his head.   
  
"No. Leon's coming over soon. You'll be safe, I promise," Chris said, silently hoping that she would be safe. Sherry's eyes immediately lit up.   
  
"Leon's coming?" she asked, sounding happy. Chris nodded.  
  
"Can I...stay up until he comes?" she asked. Chris couldn't help but smile.  
  
"All right, kiddo, but go straight to bed after he arrives, okay?" Chris said. Sherry nodded, and Chris felt a little better about leaving Sherry with Leon. Now he just had to wait until Leon arrived.  
  
The minutes ticked by with agonizing slowness. To Chris, it seemed like hours had passed. Chris talked to Sherry to keep his mind occupied, but he couldn't stop thinking about Claire. The more time he wasted, the more Claire's life was at risk. He was upset with her that she had run off without telling him, but he knew she was doing it to protect him.  
  
"Leon's here!" Sherry's excited voice snapped Chris out of his thoughts. His front door opened and Leon stepped inside. He was greeted by Sherry, who wrapped her arms around his waist in a tight hug.   
  
"I'm glad to see you too, Sherry," he smiled. He looked up at Chris and the smile faded.   
  
"I brought some weapons for the both of us," Leon said.   
  
"Thanks. Take good care of Sherry," Chris replied.  
  
"Don't worry, I won't let them take her again," he said protectively. Chris nodded and went to go pack everything he would need for the mission. He had no idea what was in store for him, but he'd risk everything to get Claire back.   
  
'Claire, just hang on until I get there,' he thought to himself.   
  
Steve was lost in thought. He knew he should be paying attention to his surroundings, but he kept thinking about the events that had happened after his "revival". It was like he was thrown into the middle of some horror story. He felt like he was relieving Rockfort all over again, except this time there were no Umbrella soldiers bursting into his house, killing his mother...  
  
'Shut up,' he told himself. Claire had found him too. She had thrown herself into a death trap just to find him, and it certainly saved him the trouble of finding her himself. Steve felt a mix of emotions. Did she really care about him?   
  
Steve came to a stop as he entered a room.  
  
"Oh man..."  
  
There were two paths for him to take, and neither path looked better then the other. A blood-covered staircase was to his left, and right beside it was a rotting wood door.   
  
'Maybe I should finish exploring the first floor,' Steve thought. He grabbed the rusty doorknob and turned it, but it was locked. Frustrated, he rammed his shoulder into the door. He was so sick of all the locked doors. He couldn't help but feel as if he were being led somewhere by some unknown force. Like something was trying to control him, and he hated it.   
  
He felt something small and light fall onto his head and into his hair. It wriggled about as he frantically brushed it off, his fingers touched something wet and slimly as he pulled it off him. He threw it to the ground, where he was able to get a good look at it.  
  
"Oh sick..." he muttered. On the ground was a wriggling, slimly maggot. It was about the size of a baseball and it looked like something had been eating away at it. He brought his foot down on it, and with a sickening crunch the maggot was nothing more than a pile of green ooze. For once he was glad that Claire wasn't around, because if he threw up, he certainly didn't want Claire to see it.   
  
He heard a disgusting noise above him. Steve looked up to see that this rotting door was home to several huge decaying maggots. The crawled in and out of the holes in the door, leaving trails of green slime.   
  
Repulsed, he ran up the staircase, trying hard to ignore the blood on the stairs. As he reached the top of the stairs, he heard a faint sound. It sounded like it could have came from anywhere. He walked down a long hallway, past the row of doors. There was an opened door at the far end. His pace quickened, anxious to get through that door.   
  
A loud noise from one of the rooms made him jump. It was the sound of someone banging on piano keys. The horrible banging stopped, and was replaced by a smooth, beautiful, and melancholy sound. Steve didn't have a lot of musical knowledge, but he guessed it was some sort of classical piece.   
  
'Who would be playing music in a place like this?' Steve wondered. Without hesitating, he shoved open the door and pointed his shotgun at the mysterious piano player. The piano player was indeed a man, dressed in a dark suit. He had long, raven black hair that seemed to shine in the dim light. He continued to play, either unaware or not caring that he was being held at gunpoint. For a few minutes, the only sound that could be heard was soft composition that the piano player was engrossed in. As the music continued, the piano player finally spoke.   
  
"What do you think of this place? Such beauty, isn't it?" he said in a deep, calm tone. Steve looked around. The room was decorated with green carpeting and there were candles everywhere. There were paintings of a little girl all over the room, in each painting she was doing something different. Always happy and smiling.   
  
"This is one of my favorite rooms," he spoke, "Here, I'm always surrounding by the things I love most."  
  
"Who are you?" Steve demanded. He kept his shotgun trained on the man. No normal guy would be sitting in a mansion full of monster, playing the piano and commenting on the mansion's decor. The piano player stopped playing and turned to look at Steve. His eyes were a dark blue and partially hidden by his long bangs. His face was very pale and serious-looking. Steve assumed he was in his late thirties. He looked very frail, like he had never lifted a weight in his life. A smile appeared on his face.   
  
"You may call me Cornelius," he said calmly, "and welcome to my home." 


	8. The Cell Hallway Battle

"Who reads this kind of stuff?" Claire asked herself as she stood in front of a large bookcase. The door the crest had opened didn't lead to anywhere special. It had only led to an almost empty room. The bookcase was packed with books centering around demons, torture, and cults. Claire was disgusted by it. There was an old book with no title in the middle of the bookcase. She picked it up and flipped to a random page. There was red ink underlining some of the words. 

"The crying woman holds the key to open the door of tragedy."

'What does that mean?' Claire wondered. She noticed something on the bookcase where she removed the book. It was a key in the shape of a cross. Claire tucked the key into her pocket.

'Well, at least I found something. Now I need to go find Steve...' Claire turned around and stepped forward. As she did she heard something crack under her. Before she could move, the floor fell under her and Claire screamed as she plunged into darkness.

Cheryl Higgins silently watched Wesker as he stared at the computer monitor. It was impossible to tell what he was feeling. He barely showed the slightest hint of emotion, aside from annoyance or anger. Yet Cheryl wanted to prove herself to him. She felt some kind of attraction to him. Cheryl blushed from embarrassment. 

'Cheryl, you're a scientist, not some love-struck teenager. Start acting more professional,' she thought. Wesker, aware that someone was watching him, turned his head.

"Oh, it's just you," he said. Cheryl was a little surprised, he would usually say something like, "what are you doing here? Get out." 

"M-Mr. Wesker, are you all right?" she asked quietly. Wesker turned away from the monitor and walked toward her. He stopped inches away from her and looked down. Then he did something she never thought he was capable of doing. He smiled at her. 

"There's something I need to take care of at the Cornelius mansion...if I don't come back, there's something I want you to do for me," he said. Cheryl's throat went dry. He wanted her to doing something for him? And what did he mean by 'if I don't come back?'

"Of course, Mr. Wesker," Cheryl said. _I'll do anything you want me to._

"Good," Wesker motioned for Cheryl to come closer to the monitor. Cheryl obeyed without hesitation. She wouldn't dare disobey Wesker. He quickly typed in something and a file appeared. It looked like someone's address...

"I need some men to go to this address. There's a little girl named Sherry Birkin that I want brought back. I can count on you to do that, right?" Wesker asked. Cheryl quickly nodded.

"I'll make sure she's brought here," Cheryl said, trying to sound more confident. Wesker printed out the address and gave it Cheryl. Her fingers brushed against his hand as she took the paper from him. She blushed and looked down, feeling embarrassed and stupid. 

"Okay. You may leave now," Wesker said. Without a word, Cheryl hurried towards the door. Before she left his office, she turned around and looked at him. Her face was red.

"Um...Mr. Wesker, if there's anything wrong..." Cheryl trailed off. She wasn't sure how to finish. 

"I'm fine. You don't have to worry," he said calmly. Cheryl flashed him a quick smile before leaving. Wesker watched her as she left. 

'Stupid girl...so easy to manipulate. She'll probably try to do all the work herself,' he thought. Maybe Cheryl Higgens wasn't so useless after all...

Claire groggily awoke to the sound of metal scraping against the floor. Her body ached from the fall, but she didn't seem to have broken anything. She sat up, wincing in pain. She was in a small room with a single oak door, surrounded by the rubble from the first floor.

'What's that sound...?'

Claire picked up her handgun and curled her finger around the trigger. She slowly got to her feet and made her way to the door, trying to be as quiet as possible. She pressed her ear against the door, listening to the sound of someone dragging something heavy against the ground. 

The noise stopped. It was silent for several minutes. 

"Is someone there?" Claire asked aloud. She waited for an answer, but it was still quiet. Gathering her courage, Claire opened the door and stepped inside.

There was a row of empty cells. A musty smell filled the room and the doors were rusted. Most of the cells were trashed and Claire could hear water dripping from somewhere. A large steel door stood at the end of the hallway. There was no trace of the mysterious person or thing that was making that weird noise. Claire walked past a few cells, glancing all around the hallway. 

'Where is it? Did I just imagine it?' Claire thought. Then it started again, only this time she could hear a soft grunting. Claire thought it could be a zombie, but zombies didn't sound anything like that. They moaned, not grunted like some animal. 

The door shook as whatever was on the other side rammed it. Claire jumped back in surprise and fumbled to aim her handgun. A huge dent appeared in the door as it smashed the door again. Claire watched in horror as the door flew off its hinges and landed in a crumpled heap of steel. 

A figure shuffled out. It looked like a man, but he was huge. He was much taller than Claire was, and looked extremely obese. It was dragging something along the ground and was limping towards Claire. As it came closer, its characteristics became more and more clear.

The figure was no human. It had bright red skin, just like the zombie she and Steve had seen. Half of its gut had decayed revealing its insides. Part of its slimy intestine was dangling from its rotting, exposed stomach. The intestine itself looked like it had been partially eaten. Its clothes were ripped and drenched in blood, and it was blind-folded. In its hand it carried an large axe. It left a trail of blood across the floor as it dragged itself forward. 

Claire couldn't stifle a gasp at the horrible site, and the monster lifted its head when it had heard the sound. She covered her mouth and mentally kicked herself.

'Great going...now you've got its attention,' she thought to herself. The zombie stared at her for what seemed like hours. Sweat dripped from Claire's forehead. It continued to limp towards Claire, showing no sign of aggression. 

'Maybe he didn't know where it can from,' Claire thought hopefully. She could slip past it and not even have to fight it. She didn't realize how close the monster was to her when it stopped just a few feet away from her. It stood silently, looking down at her. She barely notice that it was lifting its axe off the ground.

'Oh no! NO!' her mind screamed. The monster lifted its axe into the air and with one giant swing, it brought its axe down on Claire. Claire leapt away before the axe could cleave her in two and accidentally dropped her handgun. She could practically feel the ground shake as the axe smashed into the ground. The monster's gentle grunting turned into a loud snarl. It pulled its axe out of the ground effortlessly. Claire ran, trying to find a place to hide. The only place she could go was into one of the cells.

The monster was running after Claire, swinging its axe wildly. It reminded her of Steve, when he had turned into that horrible monster and tried to kill her. The was an open cell to Claire's right. She dove in, barely avoiding the axe's blade. She slammed the door closed, but it wouldn't hold for long. The monster was slamming its axe against the door over and over. She was trapped. 

_Just like Steve..._

Claire half-expected a giant tentacle to burst out of the wall and attack her. She felt sick to her stomach. She didn't want to remember those things at a time like this. Claire scrambled to the back of the cell, tripping over something as she backed away. She looked down.

At her feet was a slumped over corpse of what looked like a solider. His head was crushed in and large chunks of his flesh were missing. He looked like he had been dead for a long time. In his hands was an assault rifle. Claire tried not to look at the corpse as she plucked the assault rifle from him. She quietly mumbled an apology.

'Please be loaded, please be loaded,' she thought. This gun was her only way of survival. She didn't have her handgun anymore. She checked the gun, inside were bullets just waiting to be used. The door flew open and the zombie stumbled in. Claire knew that the cell was way too small to fight in, but the zombie didn't. The zombie swung its axe over its head, then reeled back when it struck the ceiling of the cell. Claire took this opportunity to slip past it and back into the hallway. 

There was another snarl as the monster regained its composure and chased Claire down the hallway. Claire knew she'd never make it out in time. She turned and aimed the assault rifle at the zombie. The gun jerked in her hands as she held down the trigger. The monster cried in pained and spasm as it was showered in bullets. It stumbled back and used its arms to shield itself. Blood sprayed everywhere as the monster was driven back. 

Click. Click.

Claire cursed. The assault rifle was empty. She looked up, expecting to see the zombie charging at her to finish her off. To her surprise, it was limping away from her. Blood dripped from the bullet wounds all over its body. She had won. 

Claire quickly scooped up the handgun she had dropped and turned around and ran as fast as she could down the hallway. The zombie let out a long, agonized wail as it traveled further down the hallway and out of Claire's sight. Soon, the only thing that could be heard was the soft scraping of metal across a cold, hard floor.


	9. The Right Decision

Author's Note: Hiya. These separate scenarios are getting harder and harder to do. I'm going to introduce a familiar character in this chapter, but she won't play a big role (unless you want her to o_o)I'm going to have to start combining scenarios somehow, or I'll go insane! Anyway, this chapter deals with more Cornelius fun! Enjoy!

"This is _your_ mansion?!" Steve exclaimed. Cornelius didn't say anything. Instead, he turned his back to Steve and began to play again. Steve felt frustrated. Was this guy insane or just stupid? Didn't he realize this place was crawling with monsters?

"Hey! Answer me!" Steve exclaimed. Cornelius ignored him and continue playing the piano. This time, the song sounded more dramatic rather than melancholy. It seemed that Cornelius was finished talking to him, but Steve wasn't. Steve roughly grabbed Cornelius's shoulder. A sharp pain flowed through Steve's hand almost instantly. Steve cried out in pain and pulled his hand away. To his surprise, he saw his hand was bleeding and that Cornelius was glaring at him. His fingertips were covered in Steve's blood. 

"Don't _ever_ interrupt me," Cornelius hissed. Cornelius raised his hand to his mouth, and to Steve's disgust, began licking the blood off his fingers. He looked liked he was enjoying it. 

"You're not like other people. You know that, right?" Cornelius said. He waited for Steve to answer. Steve didn't know what was so different about him that would make Cornelius say that.

'Unless he means the virus, but what's the big deal about that?' Steve thought. He noticed Cornelius was beginning to get annoyed by the silence between them. 

"What are you talking about?" Steve asked. He expected Cornelius to snap at him, but instead he just smiled.

"You're a lot stronger than you think. I can tell," Cornelius explained, "I like that about you. I despise weak people," Cornelius's voice filled with venom at the last sentence. Steve hesitated to answer.

"What do you want with me?" he asked. 

"Nothing. Although, I would like a favor later on in the future," Cornelius smiled. Steve shuddered at the thought of what kind of favor Cornelius would want from him. Whatever it was, Steve doubted it would be a simple favor. 

"Do you know a way out? There's monsters everywhere..." Steve said. 

"I know. Go back the way you came and inspect the maggot-infested door again. I think that'll point you in the right direction," Cornelius said. Steve nodded, but he wasn't sure if he could trust Cornelius.

'How does he seem to know everything I do?' Steve wondered. 

"Now go. I want to be alone," Cornelius said. Steve was more than happy to leave and get away from this creepy man. As Steve closed the door, the sound of a piano playing filled the mansion once again. 

The door was still covered in maggots. Steve didn't know how this door was going to help him. It was locked.

'Unless I sit here and wait for the maggots to devour the door, I'm not going anywhere. Maybe if I blast the door with the shotgun...,' Steve thought. He didn't know what Cornelius meant by inspecting the door again.

_What could I have missed?_

__

Then he saw it. A key was imbedded in a single, wriggling maggot. Without thinking, he lunged for it and grabbed the maggot off the door before it disappeared into one of the holes. He yanked the key out of the maggot and it easily came out, along with some green ooze from inside the maggot. Steve quickly dropped the maggot. It squirmed helplessly on the ground as its insides spilled out from the large tear on its body. After a few minutes, it stopped moving. 

"Yuck," Steve muttered. His hand and the key was covered in slime. He tried to wipe the slime off using the wall, making a mental note to wash his hands when he found a restroom. He looked at the cut on his hand.

'What the...?' The cut was healed. Cornelius had sliced his hand pretty badly, yet he could barely tell. The was no blood, no scar...No normal person should heal that quickly. 

'Is that what Cornelius meant by I'm not like normal people?' Steve asked himself. He shook his head. He didn't have time to think about it. 

Steve brushed a few maggots off the door and quickly unlocked it. He opened the door and walked through, trying to ignoring the crunching sound under his boots. 

"Miss Ada?" a quiet voice asked. Ada Wong looked up from her paperwork to see Cheryl Higgins looking at her.

"Yes?" Ada asked calmly. Cheryl handed her a paper with an address on it.

"Mister Wesker wanted some people to go capture a little girl named Sherry Birkin and bring her back here. I was hoping you and some other men would be able to do it," Cheryl quickly explained. Ada frowned as she read the address. 

"Fine," she said. 

"Thank you," Cheryl said. She hurried off, probably to get back to her own work. Ada sat quietly in her chair, reading the address over and over. Her job was to go get Sherry Birkin, the same little girl they had brought in before. Ada knew exactly what they would do to her if she was caught again. 

Ada felt a little fond of the girl. She had stopped by where she was being held and talked with her from time to time. They would talk about all kinds of things, and once Sherry began to trust her, she told her a lot about herself. Sherry's health worsened every time she visited, but Sherry always had a smile for her. She told Ada she was "a lot nicer than those other people that visited her." 

As time passed, Ada wasn't allowed to see her anymore. The only people that could see Sherry were the doctors and scientists, or Wesker. Ada assumed that the little girl was dying, or maybe worse. 

Then Leon came to rescue little Sherry. It surprised Ada that he had some connection to Sherry, and that he had came here of all places. Of course, she didn't meet him face-to-face during his rescue mission. She wanted to, but she didn't have the nerve to see or talk to him just yet. Ada Wong would have to stay dead a little longer...

'So what are you going to do?' Ada asked herself. If she went and captured Sherry, she'd be putting the little girl through all that pain again, and that would also mean she and Leon wouldn't be friends the next time they met. If she didn't, she'd have to deal with Wesker, and that was never a good thing. 

"Hey, Ada, what's that you've got?" A voice interrupted her. Ada looked up to see a young man-one of her co-workers. She had to make a decision...

'No, I can't. If Wesker wants someone to capture Sherry, he'll have to find someone else.' 

Ada smiled and crumpled the paper in her hand.

"Trash," she answered simply.

__


	10. The Girl in the Labyrinth

Author's Note: Hi! Sorry about the delay, but the chapters are getting harder to write. I'm sorry about all the scene jumping, but once the characters' scenarios come together, it should go more smoothly...I hope. Anyway, try and figure out what the whispering translates to! 

Steve was outside. A cold breeze swept past him, causing him to shiver. He was in a labyrinth, or that's what it looked like. There were large stone walls covered in moss. It was dark and misty out, his only source of light was the moon. A string of light bulbs were hung from the walls, but none of them were on. 

"How am I going to find my way out of a place like this?" he wondered out loud. 

He took a few steps forward. He heard a soft whispering behind him. Steve spun around and aimed his shotgun.

Nothing.

"Man...I must be hearing things," Steve mumbled to himself. He walked forward and heard something shuffling behind him. A loud shuffling. Steve turned around again to see a dark shape moving towards him. 

"Claire?" Steve asked. The figure didn't respond, but the whispering began again. This time it was a little louder and high-pitched.

_Llik em esaelp. Llik em esaelp. Llik em esaelp. Llik em esaelp. _

'What is this thing?' Steve wondered to himself. He aimed his shotgun at the creature as it shuffled into the moonlight. It look feminine as far as Steve could tell. He could almost see through its ghostly-white skin. It had thick, reddish-brown hair that reached its waist. The creature folded its arms over its bare chest, as if to hide something, and it hung its head as it moved towards him. 

'Strange...it doesn't look like a zombie,' Steve thought. Zombies were gross and decayed, yet this monster looked almost human. The monster lifted its head and to Steve's surprise, it's head was completely wrapped in bandages.

"Stay back!" Steve shouted at it.

_Llik em esaelp. Llik em esaelp. Llik em-_

The bandaged area where Steve thought the mouth was suddenly turned a crimson red. The monster shrieked and ran at him. It's arms thrashed about, and Steve could see the numerous scars and bloody stitches across its chest. He pulled the trigger and fired a shell into the monster's body. 

It didn't even faze it.

'What is this thing?!' Steve thought. He shot it a few more times, but it didn't stop. Steve stumbled back and quickly turned to run. He rounded the corner of the stone wall and ran from the monster as fast as he could. 

'I can't believe I'm doing this all over again,' Chris thought bitterly. The thought of going into another monster-filled mansion stirred up some bad memories for Chris. He had hoped that he would never have to go into another mansion for as long as he lived, and yet here he was. 

Wesker told him he'd have to take the long way into the mansion, through the mansion's "more dangerous" areas. Fortunately, he was prepared. Leon had gave him his shotgun and magnum. 

Now he was in a small, makeshift hospital of some sorts. There were wheelchairs with leather straps scattered about and papers everywhere. Plants were overturned and the walls were filthy and cracked.

'A hospital that's connected to a mansion? What kind of place is this?' Chris thought. He had a bad feeling about this. He doubted that this place was built to help the sick. Chris walked over to the desk and began rummaging through papers. Under the messy stack of papers was a tape recorder. He pressed the play button. 

_"...A young woman was brought in today. We took her to the experimental room. Unlike the others, she did not show any fear until we began the experiments. She was able to last longer than most of the subjects..."_

A chorus of muffled groans caught Chris's attention. He quickly whirled around, knocking the tape recorder onto the ground and reached for his shotgun. 

_"After the tests were over, we were given special orders to inject her with Cornelius's new virus. She was going to be one of the prototype_ _'N-Virus monsters'..."_

"Please, please, don't let them be here..." Chris thought. The groans became louder, but he still couldn't tell where they were coming from.

_"She mutated rapidly, becoming less and less human with each passing day. Her skin grew paler, to the point where I could see straight through her. Her face was horrifyingly ugly and decayed. We had to wrap her entire face in bandages to keep it from peeling right off her skull. But despite this, she became a true monster. In fact, we even gave her a name. We called her..."_

The tape recorder crackled. Chris was startled by a sudden female shriek. After regaining his composure, he realized that the screaming was coming from the tape recorder. 

_"No, no! Please don't-"_ A agonized scream emitted from the tape recorder. The disgusting sound of flesh being cut open followed. It sent chills down Chris's spine. 

"_No! Please, someone help me! Please! Stop! Noooo!" _The woman screamed again. Chris quickly reached down to turn the tape recorder off. As he did, a door swung open and several zombie-like monsters stumbled out. Each of them were badly mutilated. 

'What the hell happened to them?' Chris wondered. The zombies stumbled over each other, clawed at each other, and did everything they could to reach their new meal. Chris felt no sympathy as he pulled the trigger on the shotgun and blew several of the zombies apart. He could hear more zombies pounding on the doors of the hospital, trying desperately to get out. 

Chris ran through the hallways, ignoring the banging of the zombies' fists against the locked doors. If they all busted out, there would be no way to fight them all off. He stopped at a door at the end of the hallway. He turned the knob, but it wouldn't budge.

Suddenly, several doors swung open. The once-human victims that were trapped inside each room stumbled out, all of them moving in Chris's direction. Chris silently swore at his bad luck and looked at the locked door. Without hesitating, he blasted the door. It took three shotgun shells to blast the door apart. As soon as he felt cold, clammy fingers brush against his arm, he ran inside.

Chris quickly navigated through the hospital's hallways. It seemed that the zombies that had escaped had stopped following him. He stopped to take a breather in the middle of the hallway. He leaned against a white door.

'I must be getting out of shape...' Chris thought to himself. A few high-pitched wails echoed through the hospital. Chris looked up to see zombies dressed in nurse uniforms shuffling toward him. They opened their rotting jaws and let out a long moan, outstretching their arms to catch him. He immediately opened the door and plunged into a darkened room. He slammed the door behind him. Chris fumbled with the light switch. As the room was lit, Chris saw that he wasn't alone in this room. A man dress in black had his back to him, looking through various bottles and vials.

"Wesker!" Chris exclaimed. Before Wesker could fully turn around, Chris grabbed the magnum from his belt and pointed it at Wesker's head. Chris's finger tightened around the trigger. Wesker only chuckled.

"What are you going to do, shoot me?" he asked coldly. 

"That's exactly what I'm going to do, you murdering-" 

"Now, now, watch your temper," Wesker taunted. 

"Give me one reason why I shouldn't blow your brains out," Chris said. Wesker pulled out a radio and held it up for Chris to see. 

"Because if I can't stay in contact with the other people listening in on this radio, they'll think something has happened to me," Wesker explained, "and if they think something has happened to me, they have orders to take the girl, Sherry Birkin, and kill anyone who interferes."

Chris stood there silently. His hand was shaking slightly from rage. Wesker was trying to threaten him. He didn't know if it was a bluff or not, but he wasn't willing to risk Sherry or Leon's life to find out. As tough as Leon was, he wouldn't be able to take down an entire group of heavily armed men. 

"Fine, I won't kill you for now," Chris muttered. He turned to leave. Facing zombies sounded a lot better than dealing with Wesker. As soon as he touched the knob, he heard Wesker behind him.

"Where do you think you're going, Redfield? I didn't say I was done with you yet. I suggest if you want your friends to remain safe, you do as I tell you. I can order my men to take the girl anytime I like, you know..." 

Chris took his hand off the knob and looked at Wesker. Anger was written all over his face, which caused Wesker to smile. 

"Don't worry. Just do as I say and everything will be fine," he said simply. 


	11. Tormentor

Author Note: I hope you're happy...this chapter took me forever to do with all the schoolwork I had to do...Yet this chapter was kind of fun, even if I am writing it while I have a cold. A warning though, this chapter has sexual situations in it. Although it doesn't go very far, it's still there. This chapter is focused on Steve. ^_^ Now, enjoy! (Or else!)

Steve was stuck at his first dead end. Giant stone walls loomed above him, adding to the hopelessness of his situation. The darkness seemed to close around him like a dark, suffocating coffin. Steve knew that the monster was still trying to find him. He suddenly felt like a mouse, trapped in a giant maze. 

Steve turned around with the feeling that something was behind him. Thankfully, the monster wasn't there, but he was sure she was getting closer. He quickly weaved to the left and ran forward. He heard a shriek echo through the stone labyrinth. He didn't know where she was, but he could tell she was nearby. 

Steve ran onward blindly while panic told his body where to move. Just ahead of him there was a T-junction. He randomly picked right, hoping that he had made the right choice. As he neared the T-junction, the monster woman stumbled out from the left. He gave a surprised yelp as he nearly collided with the her. She quickly lifted her head in alertness as he staggered around her and ran to the right. She reached out for him, only feeling air slip through her fingers. 

Steve knew that going to the right was a bad idea the moment he saw three stone walls blocking his path. He skidded to a stop and lost his footing, smashing into a wall. He cried out in shock as he hit the dirt. Steve was dazed, but he quickly shook it off. He looked up to see the woman standing only a couple feet away from him. She removed her hands from her chest, revealing a large bloody hole. Steve could make out the throbbing heart still beating abnormally. She held out her hands to him, as if she were trying to give him something. The monster wasn't running anymore, instead she took slow steps toward him. There was no need to hurry, she had him cornered.

Steve backed against the wall, clutching the shotgun. He fired a few shells at her exposed heart, but she quickly blocked it with her arms. Frustrated, he fired again. He didn't stop firing until the shotgun was empty. She seemed to patiently wait until he was finished, and then held out her hands once again and walked forward. There wasn't a scratch on her. 

'You've got to me kidding me...'

The monster stopped a few feet in front of him. Strands of her flowing auburn hair blew in the cold, night wind. Steve's mind screamed at him to run while there was still time, yet he felt frozen. There was something strange about this monster. It looked like a disfigured angel. The red stain on the bandages around its face had become larger. 

_Llik em esaelp. Llik em esaelp. Llik em esaelp. Llik em esaelp. _

Then it happened. Before Steve could run, she lunged forward and grabbed his arms. A chill ran down his spine as its cold, clammy fingers dug into his skin. She pinned him against the wall as he fought and kicked to get away. A thin, red line appeared across her stomach. It opened up and blood gushed down in rivers down her delicate stomach. 

Fat, slimy, black, worm-like things began to emerge from the monster's stomach. It reminded Steve of those maggots he had seen blocking the door. To his surprise, the black worm-like things began stretching themselves into thin, long tentacle-like limbs. The monster didn't seem at all bothered that these disgusting things were coming out of her stomach. Steve, on the other hand, felt like he was going to throw up.

The tentacles thrashed about in a disorganized manner, feeling everything around them. Then they stopped suddenly, all of them lying still. One of the tentacles began to twitch, and lifted itself off the ground, as if the monster were trying to control it. The tentacle slide up Steve's arm, creating a thin trail of blood on his skin. He struggled again, but the monster still held him in place. The tentacle wrapped itself around his wrist. He could feel warm, wet blood smear against his skin. Disgusting. 

The other tentacles soon followed the first one's example. One wrapped itself around his other wrist, and the other two wrapped themselves around his ankles. The monster finally let go, and her arms fell to her sides. Steve stood there, unable to move. 

'What the...what is she going to do to me?' he thought. She could kill him, right now. It would have been so easy for her to slip her hands around his neck and swiftly snap it in two. Yet she didn't budge.

Then she raised her hand and gently touched his cheek. He jerked his head away from her, the touch of her hand making him uncomfortable. Annoyed by this, the monster grabbed his chin and forced him to look straight at her. With one hand she reached back and began to remove the bandages from her face. She did it slowly with a single trembling hand. A sticky, thin fluid clung to the bandages. Red, meaty chunks of flesh dropped to the floor. Once the bandages completely came off, all that was left was her disgusting, fleshless face. 

'Oh my God,' Steve thought. Her face was nothing but decaying, lumpy muscle and blood. She had no eyes-just a couple of black, empty holes. She had no lips either. The muscle tissue just folded over the ridges of her mouth. 

He tried to jerk his head away again, afraid to look at her, but her grip was strong. She then touched his neck with her other hand, digging her fingernails into his soft flesh. She brought her face closer to his. 

'This is it,' he thought miserably, 'she's going to kill me.' He thought of Claire, and how he'd never be able to see her again. 

He closed his eyes and waited for her to devour him. He waited for that horrible pain that came just before death. 

It never came. 

He felt her warm breath on his neck. He slowly opened his eyes to see that she was still near it. Her thumb began to gently rub his jugular. As she did that, she began to press her body against his. Her open, throbbing heart beat against his chest in a rhythmic pattern. It stained his shirt with the blood from her open wound. Steve didn't dare move, afraid of what might happen to him if he did. 

Her hand glided down his torso, stroking it in an almost loving manner. 

'Is she...is she going to do what I think she's going to do?!' he thought panicked. Her hands stopped at his pants. He looked down in bewilderment as she loosened his belt. She didn't even bother looking at him as she did it. 

"G-get the hell away from me!" he screamed at her. She slipped her hand into his pants, feeling around as she did. He felt her clammy fingers brush against his waist. Knowing what would come next, he fought as hard as he could to escape. He yanked so violently on his restraints that one of the tentacles was ripped out of the monster's stomach in a spray of blood. The monster screamed as her some of her innards were tore in half from the force of the pull. The tentacle loosen itself from Steve's wrists and fell to the ground.

With one hand free, he grabbed the other tentacle and tried to pry it off. Before he could, the monster let out a furious screeched and slammed him against the stone wall. Steve was dazed and hurting from the blow. The monster tightened her grip around his neck, cutting off his air supply. His vision began to blur and he couldn't think straight anymore. 

There was a sudden flash of light and a scream. Steve found himself able to breathe again, and that he was now laying on the ground. As his sight cleared, he saw the monster shrieking in pain. She was shielding herself with her arms while backing away. He noticed that the string of light bulbs were lit. 

'She doesn't like light...' 

Steve stumbled to his feet and quickly fasten his belt. He took off away from the monster, staying as close to the light as he could. The monster didn't follow him, but he could still hear her painfully shrieking as she was driven back by the illuminated labyrinth.


	12. A Book for My Daughter

Author's Note: Whoa…I was away for a while, wasn't I? Sorry. I'm really, really happy that I've been getting reviews ^_^ Thank you so much! It's really encouraged me. Oh, and thanks about the name of Cornelius too. I'm not going to tell you if Claire's the zombie or not…but you will find out soon. Now, enjoy!

Claire…

Chris stared at the hospital tiles, trying to ignore the sound of his enemy's footsteps and the faint moaning behind him. Dozens of emotions swirled inside of him. Claire could be hurt or dead, there were monsters lurking everywhere, and now he had just become Wesker's little "pawn". God only knows what would happen after Wesker was through using him.

'I have to stay focus. Claire is my only concern, Wesker doesn't ma-'

"The elevator," a deep voice mumbled.

"Huh?" Chris snapped out of his thoughts to face Wesker. Wesker sighed in annoyance at Chris's incompetence. He motioned to the rusty elevator door he was standing next to. 

"We'll use this elevator. The hospital is underground. It'll led us straight into the mansion," he explained. He saw Chris's eyes narrow at him as he spoke, showing that deep hatred that pleased him. He grinned slightly before turning to the keypad and entering the four-digit password. Chris heard a mechanical whirl followed by the sound of the elevator descending. 

The elevator screeched to an uneasy halt. It sounded like the elevator hadn't been used in years.

'I wonder how far we'll get before this rusty piece of crap breaks on us,' Chris thought bitterly. The doors cracked open and a gray, wrinkled hand slipped out. Several other gray, rotting hands slithered out of the gap of the elevator. Chris and Wesker stepped back and drew their weapons. Just as they did, the doors slid all the way open and four zombies stumbled out to greet them. 

Chris aimed up and blew off the head of the first zombie. Its head exploded into a shower of blood as the body fell to the ground. The other zombies lunged forward, oblivious to their fallen comrade. Chris fired again, this time severing off the torso of the second zombie. The zombie's top half began to drag itself towards him, leaving a sloppy trail of blood and entrails behind it. He brought his foot down on the miserable creature, killing it. Its partner reached out for him, stretching out its pale sickly hand. Chris shoved it back against the hospital wall with his shoulder. He then raised his shotgun.

__

Splash

Blood splattered on his shoes. The zombie fell to the ground, unmoving. It had a large gaping hole in its side, exposing some of its ribs. 

Wesker drove his combat knife into the head of the last zombie. It moaned and staggered back, giving him enough time to smash his fist into its head. Its fragile skull shattered with a sickening crunch as his fist embedded itself into it. The zombie stopped moving instantly. He removed his fist, staring at the dripping blood that covered his glove. He smiled.

"Too easy," he said. Chris gave him a disgusted look and then turned to look at the carnage they had caused.

Blood and corpses and pieces of those corpses littered the floor. The smell was nearly unbearable. Chris looked at the open doors of the elevator and quickly stepped inside with Wesker following behind him. The doors slide close, shutting out the images of the mutilated zombies. The elevator went up. 

Chris lowered his shotgun as the elevator shuddered under them. The thought of what might be waiting for them when they got off made him feel ill at ease. Wesker stood motionless next to him. He reminded Chris of a stone statue. Wesker suddenly reached up and scratched his neck. When he moved his hand, Chris saw a large rash on Wesker's neck. 

'How the...?'

The elevator doors opened. Chris peered out to see if there was any threat, but all he saw was a nearly empty room, with the exception of a few bookcases. He felt something shove him forward, causing him to stumble out. Wesker walked out of the elevator.

"Ah, we're here," he said. 

"Good. May I go now? _Master?"_ Chris said in an icy tone. 

"I suggest you watch your tone, Redfield. Remember that your friends' lives are in my hands now," Wesker said, "and I'll let you know when I'm finished with you."

"You sick-"

"Tsk. Tsk. I'd learn to bite my tongue if I were you, Redfield."

They were silent after that. Wesker walked over to bookcases and began examining them. Each book on every shelf was some kind of gothic horror story. A great deal of them were vampire stories. One book caught his eye. It was thin and poorly made and it was bound together with cheap ribbon. Wesker pulled it out and began to read. 

**_A Book for My Daughter_**

By Victor Cornelius

This book is for you, my daughter. I wrote this so that someday I could give it to you when you're old enough. This book contains some of my memories of my days of watching you grow up and memories of your mother. I know I haven't been the best father I could be because I've always been so preoccupied with work, but I want you to know that I really do love you.

Wesker flipped the page. A picture of a woman fell out. She looked rather young. She had long, auburn hair and a pale, gentle face. She was smiling. She kind of reminded Wesker of Cheryl Higgins. He resumed reading while Chris poked his head into the second room. 

**__**

This picture is of your mother. We used to work together. She was a very beautiful woman. Oh, how I wish you were old enough to remember her. It happened one day while we were in a restaurant going over business. I was feeling a little down that day, but your mother quickly brought me out of my-

Wesker flipped through the pages, not at all interested in Cornelius's love life. He stopped at the very end of the book, where most of the page was torn off.

**_My precious Sarah, you are my Goddess. You are the very image of your mother and I love you dearly. I will give you the world as long as you're-_**

'Weird,' thought Wesker. Then again, most of Umbrella's highest ranking staff seemed to have some sort of mental problem. However, as strange as Cornelius's little obsession with his daughter was, most of him was still wrapped in mystery. 

A shrill cry filled the mansion, causing Wesker and Chris to tense up. The cry was very familiar and it didn't sound too far away. For Chris, it was a sound he hoped he'd never have to hear again.

_Hunters..._

**__**


End file.
